The Euclid algorithm is ``totally'' gaussian

Brigitte Vallée

Abstract

We consider Euclid's gcd algorithm for two integers (p, q) with 1 ≤p ≤q ≤N, with the uniform distribution on input pairs. We study the distribution of the total cost of execution of the algorithm for an additive cost function d on the set of possible digits, asymptotically for N →∞. For any additive cost of moderate growth d, Baladi and Vallée obtained a central limit theorem, and 13;in the case when the cost d is lattice 13; a local limit theorem. In both cases, the optimal speed was attained. When the cost is non lattice, the problem was later considered by Baladi and Hachemi, who obtained a local limit theorem under an intertwined diophantine condition which involves the cost d together with the ``canonical'' cost c of the underlying dynamical system. The speed depends on the irrationality exponent that intervenes in the diophantine condition. We show here how to replace this diophantine condition by another diophantine condition, much more natural, which already intervenes in simpler problems of the same vein, and only involves the cost d. This ``replacement'' is made possible by using the additivity of cost d, together with a strong property satisfied by the Euclidean Dynamical System, which states that the cost c is both ``strongly'' non additive and diophantine in a precise sense. We thus obtain a local limit theorem, whose speed is related to the irrationality exponent which intervenes in the new diophantine condition. We mainly use the previous proof of Baladi and Hachemi, and ``just'' explain how their diophantine condition may be replaced by our condition. Our result also provides a precise comparison between the rational trajectories of the Euclid dynamical system and the real trajectories.